Mathilda Malt Report: Caol Ila 27 year old 1979 Whisky Tales

For the next Mathilda malt, I'll scooch from Hokkaido to Port Askaig for a 1979 Caol Ila single cask. It was released by the German independent bottler, Whisky Tales, in days of yore (2006).

I miss two things about California, the year-round local produce and my whisky friends. One of these friends, whom I didn't meet until only a year before I left, is Mr. Zaro. Mr. Zaro, an always generous soul, celebrated his birthday yesterday, so I decided to go with this rare whisky he shared with me. I count myself spoiled. Thank you, Mr. Zaro!

Distillery: Caol Ila
Ownership: The Big D
Region: Port Askaig, Islay
Independent Bottler: Whisky Tales
'Quirky' name: The Unicorn
Age: 27 years (1979-2006)
Maturation: fresh bourbon cask
Bottles: 215
Alcohol by Volume: 57.1%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No

NEAT
Despite spending twenty-six years in what was likely a first-fill American oak barrel, the whisky has a nice light gold color, which gives me hope that it's not over-oaked. Indeed, the nose leads with anise, basil and mint leaves. Apple skins and ash. A medicinal moment here and there. Vanilla pudding. Smoky toffee (if there was ever such a thing, bring it on). With a long time in the glass, the whisky starts to pick up a fresh peach note. The palate is intensely herbal. Big on oregano, and a certain still-illicit-in-many-states herb. It's lightly sweet and not too hot. Lots of apples and a couple of limes. Hints of strawberries, marshmallows and salt. More pepper than peat. It finishes with limes and dried herbs. Salt and pepper. Lightly sweet and lightly tannic. Good length.

WITH WATER (<46%abv)
The nose is still minty, but now it's also malty. Limes and a hint of forest-y peat. A quiet pretty note of nectarine skin. The palate is still herbal and leafy. Sweeter, though with a hint of good bitterness. Like the nose, it's maltier. A few tannins. The peat seems to have dissolved. It finishes very sweetly. Again, no peat. Black peppercorns and a hint of bitterness.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Yes! The oak stayed in the background throughout, though water did bring it forward a little. Like the stunning 31 year old Special Edition Caol Ila that Cadenhead released two years ago (also a first-fill ex-bourbon cask), this whisky is very light on peat. Both read more Highland than Islay. While the Cadenhead was fruit forward, this one dishes out pepper and dried herbs. This Caol Ila is a little louder, I think. If you've opened your bottle and find it to be a bit too edgy, plop a teaspoon of water into your glass and you should find the whisky getting sweeter.

Availability - I dunno, it's a unicorn
Pricing - Rainbows?
Rating - 89 (though might be 90+ on another day)

Mathilda Malt Report: Yoichi 26 year old 1987 SMWS 116.20

In honor of my daughter's third birthday, I'm hauling out a bunch of fun oldies this week. Leading off, is the sort of whisky I will likely never try again. And frankly we may never see something of its sort during our lifetimes. A 26 year old Yoichi.

Yoichi is my favorite Japanese distillery (though Yamazaki is welcome to fight for the number 1 spot once they start releasing properly aged single malts again). Less than four years ago, finding a 15 or 20 year old officially bottled Yoichi wasn't that difficult nor horribly expensive. Though, at the time I thought $120 for the 15yo was a bit too steep. Now it's $400+. Today's whisky is not bottled by the distillery's owners, Nikka, rather it was bottled by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. According to whiskybase, SMWS is the only independent bottle to have released any Yoichis. This was their 20th, and possibly last, bottling of the Hokkaidō malt.

I received this sample from the very generous Teemu of Whisky Science during a sample swap. More on his take below.

Distillery: Yoichi (SMWS 116)
Ownership: Nikka
Region: Hokkaidō, Japan
Independent Bottler: Scotch Malt Whisky Society
'Quirky' name: Fascinating complexity and finesse
Age: 26 years (November 7, 1987 - 2014)
Maturation: virgin oak puncheon
Cask#: 116.20
Bottles: 452
Alcohol by Volume: 61.6%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colorant? No

NEAT
Its color is maple syrup with maroon highlights. Longest legs I've ever seen on a whisky. It adheres to the glass. The nose is oh, oh dear. Fresh tobacco, dark chocolate and elegant Yoichi peat. Some spicy oak notes that sniff a little like mizunara rather than American oak. With time it develops vanilla bean, fresh peaches and National Distillers-style butterscotch. The palate makes the nose's elegance seem like pretense. Intense sooty peat meets barbecue ribs. Apricots and plums. Ginger, cinnamon, green grapes and a hint of cream soda. It starts to get a little old-bourbony after 30+ minutes. It's pretty hot throughout. More of the gigantic peating in the finish. Then chili peppers, citrus and a little bit of chocolate malt.

Going a little easy on the water here due to the whisky's age.

WITH WATER (~50%abv)
Somehow the nose gets malty. It becomes sootier too. Then smoked tea, cocoa powder, honey and caramel sauce. Less peat, more hot peppers in the palate. Less alcohol heat. Lots of aromatic baking spice. Fresh ginger and a pinch of Laphroaigy iodine. It finishes with smoked tea, butterscotch and more of that pepper.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This whisky was a fascinating experiment by Nikka and a bold choice by SMWS. Twenty-six years in new oak could have resulted in something foul. But it didn't. The nose is fantastic, probably a top ten favorite for me, detailed and graceful. Meanwhile the palate flexes that big ABV, unloaded baskets of character. I wondered about that virgin oak cask while nosing the whisky. There were notes to it that are familiar from European, American and Japanese oak. Turns out, Teemu had a similar question:

@tmu76 @smwsTheVaults We think the cask was American oak. Hope you enjoy the whisky!

— SMWS UK (@SMWSUK) April 7, 2015

The American oak possibility seems more likely the longer one lets the whisky air out. More vanilla, caramel and butterscotch eases out. I'm guessing many of those other mystery notes come from a well-matured complex spirit.

Overall, the nose wins the day. The palate may improve a bit with water, but then the nose starts to lose its charm. But it's a hell of a whisky. It'll also set you back $2000-$2500 if you can find it. If you think that price is egregious, just consider that most versions of Pappy Van Winkle 23 sell for more than that in the secondary market. A bargain!

Availability - Happy Hunting!?
Pricing - $2000-$2500
Rating - 91

Happy Birthday, Mathilda Rose!

The Earth has completed three full revolutions around the sun since her birth. They've been three years unlike any other three years. It's fair to say we've all earned tonight's pizza and cupcakes. Her gender-flexible bear has earned it the most.

I am humbled every day by the expanse of Mathilda's imagination and emotions. The world can be overwhelming for someone who loves and cries as deeply as she does, but I know that our fiery and glorious mighty battle maiden will be just fine.

Bourbon and Rye Day Friday: New Holland Beer Barrel Bourbon

For good number of years, brewers have been aging their beers in ex-whiskey casks to often very good results. Recently, whiskey producers have flipped that around by maturing (or finishing) their whiskies in barrels that formerly held beer. Of course, those barrels usually held whiskey before the beer, so there's a whiskey-beer-whisky seasoning sandwich going on.

I've only tried one beer barrel finished whiskey so far, Jameson Caskmates, the classic Irish blend with a stout finish. It's regular Jameson with a little extra creaminess to it and a couple seconds of roasted notes. It didn't seem different enough from the regular release to be worthy of its own expression, nor deserving of a $10 premium.

New Holland Brewing is a Michigan brewer/distiller. According to their site and the bourbon's label, they distill their own bourbon. They also make the Dragon's Milk beer whose barrels (which were utilized for bourbon before the beer) are used for today's whiskey's three-month finish. Though New Holland's straight malts are bottled at 45%abv and their Dragon's Milk stout has a high alcohol content (for beer), they choose dilute the bourbon down to the 40%abv minimum.

All that being said, I don't know what to expect here.

Company: New Holland Brewing

Region: Michigan
Type: bourbon whiskey
Age: ???
Maturation: new American white oak, then a 3-month finish in former Dragon's Milk beer barrels
Mashbill: 70/5/25 corn/rye/barley
Alcohol by Volume: 40%

(Thank you to Vik for the sample!)

The nose has some coffee character from a smoky but flat stout. Lots of malt and marzipan. Honey and cherry candy. It also has an unmistakable grainy small-barrel craft whiskey note. The palate leads with cinnamony white dog. Black pepper and vanilla. More malt than corn. Burnt toast and a sharp bitterness. A surprising lack of sweetness, too. There's more of a beer note in the finish, sort of fizzy too. Banana bubblegum, and that strange bitterness.

I'll start with the positives. The nose has unique layers to it. I've certainly never smelled another bourbon like it. I appreciate the big malt note and lack of sweets in the mouth. It does provide an original experience.

But, I find it difficult to believe this whiskey spent "several years" in oak. The strong pepper, cinnamon and bitter notes—along with an odd quantity of heat—in the mouth, make it feel very young. As in, months-young. I don't mind the fizziness of the finish but the banana bubblegum bitterness thing is unpleasant and I'm having a hard time getting the sensation out of my mouth.

I couldn't finish the sample and I'm perfectly okay with never drinking this whisky again, but, curiously, it did make me want to try the stout.

Availability - A number of Midwest and East Coast states
Pricing - $30-$40
Rating - 69

Ballechin 13 year old 2003, cask 221, distillery-only

Edradour was my first distillery stop during our Scotland trip last July. When you're at Edradour, I highly recommend the Signatory Tasting Bar. It was at that wee drinking room I had a chance to try a 13-year-old distillery-only single cask of their heavily-peated brand, Ballechin. It won me over. It also was my sixth drink in two hours. I bought a bottle of the whisky, which is still one of the oldest Ballechins they've yet released.

By (my) definition the perfect winter whisky, it was opened as soon as late November rolled around. Five months later, the bottle was still more than 1/3 full. That's even after I'd shared it with a half dozen people. So I had maybe eight pours in twenty-two weeks. It's not that the whisky was bad. It's just that Ballechin can be enormous, even when diluted to 46%abv. This whisky is a lumbering beast, full strength, dense peat and oceans of cask influence. It's not a casual sipper.

Distillery: Edradour
Malt: Ballechin
Ownership: Signatory Vintage Scotch Whisky Co., Ltd.

Region: Highlands (Central)
Age: 13 years (May 16, 2003 - May 18, 2016)

Maturation: port cask (hogshead?)
Peat level at time of malting: ~50ppm
Cask #: 221
Bottles: 259

Alcohol by Volume: 58.6%
Chillfiltered? No
Colorant added? No
(bottom third of bottle)

NEAT
Its color is a dark dark gold. Its nose starts off with new sneakers and new tennis balls. Dense dirty peat and brown sugar-crusted bacon. Raspberry jam. The palate has dark sooty Ardbeg-like peat, then, beneath that, is a layer of mossy peat. Then bitter baking chocolate. It's plenty sweet and winey but the peat is so massive that it usually holds the grapes in check. It's intense, overwhelming. It finishes sweet, salty and hot. Lots of port. Lots of peat.

WITH WATER (~46%abv)
The nose still has a sneaker rubber note, but the bacon, and now charred beef, are louder. There are also notes of roasted nuts, grape jam, salty air and orange peel. The palate feels more focused, simpler. The sooty peat and sweet are closer to merging now. The bitterness recedes. The only new note is that of toasted almonds. The finish is earthy, nutty and jammy sweet.

More water...

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
The nose has a salty beachy note; I'll go with seaweed on this one. It's still mossy, though there's a new note of fresh plums. The palate continues to get simpler. Peat, orange peel, raspberry jam and a subtle nutty note. The finish stays sweet, and keeps notes of walnuts and almonds. The peat has lightened significantly.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Five years ago (or five drinks in) I would have sung this whisky's praises for thirteen paragraphs and given it a 92+ point score. Because bigness.

This whisky is undoubtably big in character, but is its quality as great? No. Its depth, intricacies and balance were shamed by BenRiach Solstice 17yo when I tried them side by side. What salvages this Ballechin is its ability to take water well, which sorta pulls its shit together.

I don't know if I'm going to drink another drop of this stuff neat going forward, because I'm not as masochistic as I used to be about my whiskies. And if you're looking for a porty Ballechin, I recommend Discovery Series batch 3 for both bigness and greatness.

Availability - Edradour Distillery only (if it hasn't sold out)
Pricing - £90-something
Rating - 83 (with water!)

Springbank 10 year old 1995 The Alchemist

How about a review from one of my open bottles rather than another sample? Okay then.

I bought this bottle blindly, not just because it was highly recommended by a chap whose opinion I respect, but because it was an indie port cask Springbank for goodness sakes. At the time I thought I'd overpaid ($100) for it, but port cask OB Springbanks are now going for thrice its price.

I'm not sure what happened to The Alchemist, but the bottler released a number of pretty decent whiskies 8-12 years ago. This particular bottling was not a single cask, rather a small batch mix of first-fill ex-bourbon casks and first-fill port casks. The whisky didn't do much for me when I first opened it. But then, gradually, it improved. My review comes from about mid-bottle.

Distillery: Springbank

Brand: Springbank

Owner: Springbank Distillers Ltd.
Region: Campbeltown, on Well Close, just off of Longrow

Independent Bottler: The Alchemist
Age: 10 years (December 1995 - April 2006)
Maturation: vatting of first-fill ex-bourbon casks and first-fill ex-port casks
Alcohol by Volume: 46%

NEAT
Its color is very dark gold with reddish highlights. The nose leads with dingy dirty extra-mossy peat. It's slightly tarry with some raspberries, black grapes and grapefruit. Peat in the center, wine around the edges. The palate is industrial and dirty. A little hot, a little sweet. A nice tart note merges with the peat. Grape jam, dark chocolate and lime candy. Its finish is the least peaty part. More fruit and sweets. There's a little bit of earth and tar. A peppery heat. Good length to it.

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
The peat goes herbal in the nose, though it does still have some mossy character to it. Dark chocolate and fruit (grapefruit, limes and raisins). Now there's less peat in the palate, and more port. Lots of black licorice. Grapes and limes. That good tartness remains, then sticks around through the finish. No more peat. Mostly black licorice, grape jam and limes.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
As mentioned above, this whisky really grew on me. At the start it was mostly porty with very little Campbeltown showing through. But here at the middle of the bottle, the peat shines in the nose. The palate is messier but still a very good drink. Water mellows it out and sweetens it up. I like it quite a bit and will enjoy the rest of the bottle, but $100 was much too high of a price, especially since the 10yo OB now shines at $60.

Availability - Happy hunting!
Pricing - $100+
Rating - 86

BenRiach 17 year old Solstice (2nd Edition)

As promised, there will be a few port cask whisky reviews this week. Though I did these tastings on my home turf, I wrote the posts while traveling. I hope they make at least a little bit of sense!

First up, is (SPOILER ALERT) one of the best port cask-finished whiskies in recent history. The fact that it's also peated is impressive since wine and phenolics rarely dance well together. Also, I usually don't like wine cask finished whiskies since the elements rarely merge well, making the flaws more obvious rather than silencing them. Billy Walker and his team seemed to know something most other blenders don't because Benriach's finished peated whiskies had (in my opinion) by far the highest success rate in the business.

Yes, you may have noticed my use of the past tense. Brown-Forman bought the Benriach Distillery Company last year—I just barfed in my mouth—so who knows what happens next.

Distillery: BenRiach
Ownership: BenRiach Distillery Company (now owned by Brown-Forman)
Region: Speyside (Lossie)

Age: at least 17 years

Maturation: ex-bourbon casks first, then an extended finish in tawny port casks

Alcohol by Volume: 50%
Chillfiltered? No
Caramel Colored? No
(from a purchased sample)

NEAT
The nose leads with rich peat character: seaweed, tar, salty air and band-aids. There's a light grapiness (grape-y-ness?) around the edges. Then butterscotch, burlap and honey. The peat remains ever-present in the palate, alongside a dynamic milk chocolate note. Early notes include lemons, toffee, nougat and caramel. A hint of mango. It gets sweeter with time in the glass. There's an effervescent fizziness to it throughout. A toasty peatiness highlights the finish. There's also toffee, lemon and brine. Hints of grapes and fresh ginger. A surprising lack of heat.

WITH WATER (~40%abv)
The nose becomes quite farmy. And lots of band-aids. Some tobacco and apples. The calmer palate has more butterscotch and toffee. A nice coffee/mocha note. Hints of salt and peat. A little bit of chocolate in the finish, which is sweeter than before. Lots of lemons and limes. Caramel sauce and grape jam.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Solstice is a pleasure. I hope there's a third edition in the works and it hews to the formula of the second edition. The peat is pretty fab, the port casks aren't too aggressive, and there's a remarkable lack of heat. It all works (and swims) well. I'm going to assume this is due to very good casks and great cask management. Though I'm not in the market for buying any bottles right now, I'm very tempted to get one of these.

Availability - A few dozen retailers around the world
Pricing - $80-$125, on the lower end of the range in Asia, on the higher end in Europe
Rating - 89